Governments often map the crime and violence that goes on around us; but there are other powerful stories here too: the stories of compassionate action; of places of safety and well-being.
Here's an opportunity to honor these places, to acknowledge and thank the people who host and work in them. We've created Beloved Community cards for that purpose.
We want to learn from and celebrate them. So please tell us your story of a place in your neighborhood where you feel welcome, accepted, safe--a place of beloved community. And include a picture or two as well.
We'll publish your stories, and map these places, feeding back the compassionate action and goodness that's happening every day in our neighborhoods. It's just as real as the crime and violence - and it's essential to our well-being and civic health!
You can help by Honoring such a place and the people who are responsible for it-- just download the Honoring Beloved Community card at the end of this message, write the place's name on the front and present it to them to display if they desire.
Also, please send us your story of the place. Here are some suggestions:
Tell us where the place is. Who founded and hosts it?
Give some concrete details: What does it look like, smell like, feel like?
MDI Gurgaon hosts the second chapter of Gurugram Conversations,’Compassionate Gurgaon’ August 20, 2019 | Business World Education
Themed ‘Compassionate Gurgaon’, the conference -- second in a series of multi-party discussions -- revolved around creating a more inclusive, empathetic as well as environmentally-sustainable ecosystem in the millennium city.
Gurgaon: One of India’s premier and oldest management institutes MDI Gurgaon hosted the second chapter of Conversations on Gurugram on August 19, 2019, at the college campus. The conclave gathered the millennium citizenry under one roof alongside various public and private stakeholders to hold an insightful dialogue regarding current and long-standing problems being faced by the region while devising practical strategies to resolve them.
Themed ‘Compassionate Gurgaon’, the conference—second in a series of multi-party discussions—revolved around creating a more inclusive, empathetic as well as environmentally-sustainable ecosystem in the millennium city. The discourse touched upon diverse topics ranging from some of the most pressing concerns today such as water and waste management to other vital issues including work and welfare. The first chapter of Gurugram conversations – which focused on road planning and development – was held on April 12, 2019. Read more
Charter for Compassion Returns to Chautauqua by Jamie Landers on
In honor of its 10th anniversary, Karen Armstrong’sCharter for Compassion returned to the place where it all began. The Olean Area Charter for Compassion partnered with the Institution to present “Cultivating Compassion in Your Community,” a regional conference designed to teach community members how compassion can bring them together. The conference was held on Thursday, June 13, at the Athenaeum Hotel and celebrated the anniversary of the Charter’s signing at Chautauqua.
Since 1999, Armstrong has made 39 appearances at the Institution, so when she won the Ted Prize in 2008 for her wish to create the Charter, she knew Chautauqua was the ideal place to see her vision come to fruition.
Maureen Rovegno, director of the Department of Religion, worked closely with Armstrong to prepare the Charter.
“Because Karen Armstrong was such a big part of Chautauqua, we were honored when she chose to come here and craft this really special Charter,” Rovengo said. “The final word-smithing, and I am very proud of this, was finalized right here, in the Department of Religion. I can’t think of a better place in the world to bring something so important to life.” Learn more
Press Release - Evolving Vegan Jainism - Seen at their World Convention By Frank Lane of www.UnitedVegan.org
The giants of the Vegan Movement attended the International Jaina Convention July 4-7th at the Ontario Convention Center. There was perfect alignment with the Jain philosophy of Ahimsa; doing no harm and veganism.
Dr. Will Tuttle came in blazing with compassion for all sentient beings subjected to animal slavery. Dr. Sailesh Rao rang the alarm for climate change as a result of animal agriculture and gave a vegan solution called Climate Healers. The former Vice-President of Citibank, Phillip Wollen had over 3000 attendees on the edge of their social responsibility as Jains. Frank Lane representing the Interfaith Vegan Coalition spoke at different venues advocating for Vegan Spirituality and In Defense of Animals.
Michael Klaper, MD, the Physician for the Planet was encouraged to find that many Jains have made the connection of a plant-based diet as an enlightening path of ethical and social responsibility. There was a sticker that said “Every Jain Should Be Vegan” that went viral there, placed over everyone’s heart.
For almost everyone, the realization was overwhelming for the shared sanctity of life, now that veganism is one of the fastest growing social movements on the planet. Plant-based food stocks, movies, and vegan athletes have set new records of success. Keynote speakers Ingrid Newkirk of PETA grabbed everyone’s attention and Phillip Wollen bowled us over by advocating for this ethical social revolution by putting an end to animal slavery. Learn more
Compassionate Brattleboro: Seeking to Bring the Charter to Life in our Town
Watch the video!: Brattleboro, a town of 12,600 people in South-East Vermont, joined the Charter for Compassion in 2017, the town citizens voting overwhelmingly in support of the Charter. The Compassionate Brattleboro group has been active ever since in activities to strengthen compassion in their community.
The accompanying video hosted by James Levinson and Douglas Cox highlights the many community events and programs, a series of 6 compassion-themed conversations, and recently forged relationships with communities in India, Haiti, El Salvador and Kenya, are bringing Compassion to the forefront of their community and their community’s relationship with its surroundings and indeed, the world. Future plans include plans for trust-building exercises, active listening learning and begin to have those difficult conversations on often devisive topics. Watch their video to learn more!
Compassionate Ballarat remembers with Monumental Events
An enduring example of our social infrastructure is the music memorial held each year since 1915 to honour the entire band of the Titanic who were lost in the ships sinking. The actions of those musicians, led by bandmaster Wallace Hartley is seen as one of the greatest acts off self-sacrifice in both maritime and musical history. In 1912 the bandsman’s attending Ballarat’s South Street competitions decided that a fitting tribute would be a bandstand, and by 1915 that bandstand had been built and opened. Each year a commemoration is held to both remember the Titanic band, and a musician who has passed away in the previous year. This year the musician that was honored was the muezzin of the Al Noor mosque in New Zealand, Doctor Abdas Samad, who was among the 50 people murdered by a gunman in March 2019. Dr Samad was a frequent leader of the call to prayer at the Al Noor mosque, and taught at Lincoln University. Muezzin is a call to prayer, presented with joy and dedication to the community, as is all music. In 2019 the Titanic Memorial Band commemorated the 107th anniversary of the ocean liner's demise, by inviting Muhammed Iqbal Qaseem of the Ballarat Mosque to do a call to prayer. The Titanic Memorial Band, which comprises invited members, including of the Eureka Brass, also played a program of songs that included Nearer My God To Thee, which was performed by Titanic's band as the ship began to sink in an effort to calm and assuage those passengers trapped on board.
Sahil's Ted Talk -- Disagreement: An Essential Part of Pluralism
In his TEDx Talk, Sahil expands the Golden Rule to the way we treat and really respect other people’s ideas. He also explains that intellectual diversity means disagreement. Without difference, intellectual diversity or pluralism is impossible. In other words, if we already all agree, there is no diversity.
An Interview with Dr Karen Armstrong: The Golden Rule and Religion
The.Ismaili brings you Sahil Badruddin’s interview with Karen Armstrong, an internationally acclaimed scholar andbestselling author of numerous books on religion. She won the 2008 TED Prize launching The Charter for Compassion, which has over two million signatories. She discussed her insights on compassion, the Golden Rule, nationalism, materialism, cosmopolitan ethics, religious literacy, the future of religion, perceptions of religious people, religious institutions, personal search, and her vision for the future.
Co-Human Harmony: Using Our Shared Humanity to Bridge Divides
by Gudjon Bergmann
People are tired of the divisiveness and acrimony that permeates our society. They are seeking real, down-to-earth, and achievable bridge-building methods that go beyond clichés and platitudes. In response to an ever-growing need, Rev. Gudjon Bergmann, founder and lead educator at Harmony Interfaith Initiative, gathered ideas, tools, and strategies from Nobel Peace Prize laureates, ethicists, interfaith leaders, civil rights icons, ancient prophets, sociologists, and psychologist, with an intent focus on bridging divides. The outcome is a unique composition for people who are interested in working towards a harmonious society. The overarching goal is to improve relations between those who have strong ideological disagreements about everything from religion and politics to diet and spirituality. Described as “refreshing,” “succinct, clear, and profound,” and “offering practical and powerful wisdom,” this earnest opus offers a soothing tonic to counter the disharmony in the world.
Is the world becoming more compassionate or more hateful? This prickly question is eloquently answered in the opening paragraph of Charles Dickens’ classic tale of revolution in France, A Tale of Two Cities (1859). Although Dickens was writing about “radical opposites” in places like London and Paris 160 years ago, he could easily have been writing a column in the New Yorker about the confusing dichotomies present in our domestic and global situation today.
Interview: “Compassion is essential to our survival”
by Jolanda Breur
Is compassion an antidote to our global problems? According to Karen Armstrong, it is our only chance of averting global catastrophe. At the end of November, the British historian of religion will present the annual Compassion Prize in Amsterdam: “I am hoping that there will be some international initiatives,” she says. In early November, Karen Armstrong and her team celebrated the tenth anniversary of the Charter for Compassion in Canada, during the Parliament of World Religions in Toronto. For a decade, they have been attempting to propagate the practice of compassion worldwide. When the 74-year-old former nun won the prestigious TED Prize in 2008, she decided to use the prize money of $100,000 to compose and disseminate the Charter for Compassion, which was written by leading thinkers and activists representing seven of the major world religions. It summoned men and women to make the compassionate ideal central to public and private life.
MDI Gurgaon hosts the second chapter of Gurugram Conversations,’Compassionate Gurgaon’
Charter for Compassion Returns to Chautauqua
Press Release - Evolving Vegan Jainism - Seen at their World Convention
